Man arrested after SWAT standoff in Monongahela is possible suspect in 18-year-old’s murder: sources

MONONGAHELA, Pa. (KDKA) — Emmanuel Houghton is in the Washington County Jail after an hours-long standoff in Monongahela on Wednesday.

According to online records, he was denied bail due to the seriousness of the charges and the threat to public safety.

Houghton faces a list of charges, including attempted murder, aggravated assault, receiving stolen property, firearms possession and fleeing/eluding officers.

Houghton is accused of stealing a car and leading police on a chase. During the incident, Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh said he allegedly fired at least four shots at officers before nearly crashing into one of their patrol cars.

The chase passed through Washington and Allegheny counties before Houghton fled on foot near Third and Chess streets in Monongahela.

“I was walking down the street, a police officer stopped me and told me there was an armed shooter. They were chasing him,” said witness Ronald Dalesandry.

Dalesandry said he saw Houghton run toward a brown building, where the standoff in the area began.

“I walked by and I saw that inside the building, the guy was jumping over the railing, hitting the ground floor doors and then running up the stairs and into the building,” Dalesandry said.

For hours, SWAT teams and police surrounded a home near the brown building where Dalesandry said Houghton was located. Before clearing the scene, KDKA-TV witnessed police enter the brown building with shields and guns in hand. Shortly afterward, they cleared the scene.

“If there’s a building surrounded by law enforcement, there should be no reason for a man to disappear and walk out of there. And I told him I was still in the building,” another witness said.

The witness did not want to be identified or appear on camera, but told KDKA-TV he believed Houghton was inside the brown building the whole time and questioned how police didn’t find him when they searched for him.

“Go in and search everything from top to bottom, every cupboard, every lid you find, every secret passageway,” the man said.

According to police documents, a woman called 911 from the building after crews cleared the scene and reported that a man “had just emerged from the attic” and was “covered in dirt, holding two handguns.”

The woman identified the man as Houghton and said he asked her for an e-cigarette. That’s when the second confrontation began, with Houghton going on Facebook Live for more than an hour. During the video, Houghton showed off several firearms and ammunition he had inside the building.

He also threatened to take his own life and the lives of the police.

“He had a backpack on him, so there were most likely firearms in there. And like I said, I watched his live stream last night and he was showing off his weapons and how much ammo we had,” Dalesandry said.

Walsh told KDKA-TV that it’s unclear whether Houghton was in the building the whole time, but confirmed that at one point Houghton was in a basement attic. Houghton eventually surrendered peacefully.

The prosecutor could not comment when asked if officials were investigating other suspects or how Houghton managed to steal two cars on his own. The prosecutor said the investigation is ongoing.

According to sources, Houghton is being investigated as a possible suspect in a homicide in Allegheny County. Houghton also has a lengthy criminal history in Allegheny County, including simple assault, robbery and theft.

His preliminary hearing for this case is scheduled for August 28.